National Audit Office says system needs to be upgraded before it is extended to ease strain on overcrowded prisons The rapid expansion of electronic tagging to reduce pressure on prisons will put public safety at risk without robust improvements to a system already under significant strain, the UK’s public spending watchdog has warned. The number of people in England and Wales being electronically monitored has doubled to 28,700 over five years, and is estimated to rise to 22,000 tagged each yea